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The Shape of Men’s Heads

Variations in head shapes exist amongst peoples of the world. In my work as a bespoke hat maker I have found some general variations exist  in head shape. Asian heads tend to be round with fullness at the temples. African heads are elongated like Neferatiti. Anglo Australian heads tend to be oval. When making hats […]

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Beneath the Southern Cross

Passionate about industrial heritage and recently on a trip to Lithgow, NSW  I stumbled upon a wonderful collection of Union  banners at the State Mine Museum titled “Beneath the Southern Cross”. The rise of industrialism  during the late ninteenth and early twentieth centuries was cause for pride within the union movement and these giant  banners were […]

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Forming a Flat Cap

Selecting this old 5 piece block, I am currently making a 1930’s inspired flat cap from a waxy, open plait panama. I aquired this block from a Sydney firm who, for 100 years made the military and aviation headwear for our men in uniform. By wetting and gently moulding the hat body over the wooden form and leaving it […]

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New York Street Styling

A  spontaneous moment on my research trip in the pursuit of men’s headwear was stumbling across this dude on the streets of  New York painting custom made hats on the sidewalk. He had a brisk trade in spraying logos onto his blank truckie caps. Rap tags and New York skylines were his favorite themes. He was very adept with the […]

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Making a Top Hat

After many years of making  top hats for stage and screen productions, I am very familiar with this type of hat. Toppers can take a long time to make by hand, but the results are always rewarding. Hat fittings with the client are required to select the right sillouette and to tweek the style to suit the wearer’s body […]